Well one pond is done. I never intended to put fish in the upper pond which is 900 gallons at this time. Tonight I went to move the lily's that I had in temporary tubs till this pond was done and what do I find but tons of mosquito larva and algae of course. I thought it was too early for mosquito's but apparently they are around but just don't bite till later in the year. So how other than the pond store dunks do I control them. I don't want Mosquito fish or any other fish that breeds excessively and I am sure they will migrate to my other pond once it is done this summer since they will be connected. Anyone know of a fish that fits this bill?? :huh: :huh:

Hi Froggy, could you put a pump in there to keep the water moving to prevent the mosquito's ????? I don't think they lay eggs (or whatever, lol) in moving water.

Thanks For the reply KK I have a way too small 300 gph temporary pump running water into the waterfall filter as of now. I do have a large air pump and diffuser that I could hook up if that would help? Since I will be away from home for two weeks I didn't want to come home to a mosquito factory.

FM3

you can have my fish i think I have bought every steril fish in Columbus. NOThING HAS REPRODUCED maybe the I dont want anymore children dance I do for myself has fallen upon the pond ;)

But if my fish do they must eat them all. get three fish of a diffrent kind so that they will not mate. 900 gal that is a good size pond.

C2

Or read up on becoming a sceeter farmer that sounds like a BLAST. :blink:

FM3

The mosquito larvae in the tubs were probably from lasty year's eggs. Some overwinter as eggs and hatch when the weather warms, some as larvae, some as pupae and a very few as adults. As the larvae become active in the spring, they need to get oxygen through breathing tubes at the surface. To kill the larvae in the tubs, put a drop or two of vegetable oil on the water. It will spread out into a thin film and plug the breathing tubes and prevent the larvae from getting oxygen. The vegetable oil should not harm anything else and will be broken down biologically.

For the pond, Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) is the best solution if you don't want to use fish. This is a bacterium that kills the larvae, but has no effect on other life, such as frogs and plants. This is what is in the so-called "mosquito dunks" and "mosquito bits". Or, as was already mentioned, get the water surface moving. Mosquitoes like stagnant water.

Don

Hi Froggy, I think the air pump would be a good idea, they are reliable and its not going to pump the pond dry incase of an "incident", that way you won't have to worry while you are away!

If you get the water moving, there should be few mosquitoes. If you really want to do without fish, stick with the Bt. There are dunks, bits, and Microbe-Lift makes a liquid. As for fish that stay small and are nice, I'm partial to rosy red minnows.
http://www.fishpondinfo.com/rosies.htm


My mosquito page - http://www.fishpondinfo.com/mosquito.htm

Thanks Robyn not sure if the rosy reds would over populate and eat too much of the frog spawn which would not be part of the plan.

Fm3

My rosy reds have a stable population (thanks to the herons, raccoons, etc.). They don't really eat frog eggs and tadpoles that I've noticed in my pond.

Thanks For all your imput folks. Decided to add the air pump till I get back. Wanted to fire it up anyways. :P
FM3